Accessibility Research and Users with Multiple Disabilities or Complex Needs

Arthur Theil, Craig Anderton, Chris Creed, Nasrine Olson, Raymond John Holt, Sayan Sarcar

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    4 Citations (SciVal)

    Abstract

    Conventionally, the accessibility research community centers most of its efforts on designing assistive technologies and systems related to single categories of impairments. Although this approach has contributed to valuable progress and advancements in the field, there is a growing consensus among accessibility researchers that focusing on designing technologies for single impairments oversimplifies disability since this approach may fail to adequately address the real-world experiences of a significant population of users with complex needs. Despite challenges related to conducting research with users living with multiple, profound, or complex disabilities, it is essential in terms of future work that the accessibility research community adopts a more inclusive approach where users with lived experience of multiple disabilities are directly informing and shaping the design of assistive systems and accessible technologies. Therefore, we propose the 2nd International Workshop on Accessibility Research and Users with Multiple Disabilities or Complex Needs. The workshop will act as a forum for participants to share their perspectives related to challenges and opportunities in designing accessible systems that consider the multidimensional needs of users living with multiple disabilities. This workshop intends to challenge current paradigms in the accessibility field, share latest work and foster future collaborations.
    Original languageEnglish
    Title of host publicationASSETS '23: The 25th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility
    PublisherAssociation for Computing Machinery, Inc
    ISBN (Electronic)9798400702204
    DOIs
    Publication statusPublished (VoR) - 22 Oct 2023
    Event25th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility, ASSETS 2023 - New York, United States
    Duration: 23 Oct 202325 Oct 2023

    Conference

    Conference25th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility, ASSETS 2023
    Country/TerritoryUnited States
    CityNew York
    Period23/10/2325/10/23

    Funding

    Chris Creed is a Professor of Human-Computer Interaction at Birmingham City University (UK) where he leads the HCI Research Group. His core research interest is around the design and development of assistive technology for disabled people (across a range of impairments). He is leading multiple research projects focused around accessibility such as investigating new interface techniques for facilitating creative work via gaze/speech interaction (supported through an Adobe Fund for Design grant), exploring the development of inclusive AR/VR experiences (previously funded by a Meta/Facebook research award), making coding more accessible for people with physical impairments (which has received support from a Google Inclusion Research Award and a Microsoft “AI for Accessibility” grant), and investigating the potential of wearable technology to support young people with special needs (e.g. ADHD) within residential care (funded through Innovate UK). Prof. Creed’s research is multidisciplinary in nature and has been conducted in close partnership with national charities, disability and accessibility organisations, special needs colleges, large arts/cultural partners, and disabled people. Raymond Holt is a Lecturer in Product Design in the School of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Leeds (UK), where he is a member of the Institute of Design, Robotics and Optimisation, the Immersive Cognition Lab and the Centre for Disability Studies. His core research interests are the study of haptic perception and prehension and the cocreation of assistive and rehabilitation technologies with users. He has led co-creation activities on two rehabilitation robotics projects funded by the National Institute for Health Research, and led the Leverhulme Trust-funded project Facilitating Meaningful Play for Disabled Children through Participatory Design. He has recently been part of the European Commission funded project SUITCEYES (http://suitceyes.eu), where he led activities on the sensing and navigation elements, and is currently extending this work as part of the Wellcome Trust-funded Imagining Technologies for Disability Futures project (http://itdfproject.org).

    FundersFunder number
    Google Inclusion Research Award
    Microsoft
    National Institute for Health and Care Research
    Innovate UK

      Keywords

      • Assistive Technologies
      • Disability Studies
      • Accessibility
      • Multiple Impairments
      • Complex Needs

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